University of Arizona Uses Telemedicine to Treat Asthma in Tucson Area School Children

Post Date: November 17, 2015

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Asthma treatment for Tucson Area School Children

University of Arizona researchers are using telemedicine to fight Asthma in Tucson. One might be wondering what telemedicine is. Telemedicine can be described as the usage of telecommunication and information technologies so as to provide clinical health care at a distance. It helps eliminate the barrier of distance and can improve access to medical services that would most likely not be consistently available in faraway rural communities. That has revolutionized the modern day practice of health care.

Using these technologies, researchers have taken it upon themselves to curb a respiratory ailment that has been the leading cause of absenteeism from schools in the United States of America, Asthma. It has been reported to affect a tenth of all the children living in the country. That is quite a large number. The costs, whether direct or indirect, which are incurred for asthma treatment are also very high.

This initiative is being carried out in the schools because for starters; the schools are very good at setting routines for the children. It is also vital to handle the issue at a young age before it gets out of hand later in life. Schools are believed they are going to instill a habit of taking medication. The affected learners report to the health unit in the school when they report in the morning. Using schools for the study also provides an opportunity to monitor the progress of the children and the effectiveness of the medication.

National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute cover the costs of the medication and the upkeep of the doctors who are taking part in the study through a grant that gave out. The research is headed by Clara Ehrman, who is with the Arizona Respiratory Center. She is also data collector.

Despite being given the medication, the children are also taught on how to keep asthma under the control of Public Health students, who are trained in the Lung Association’s Open Airways program. The study is run by doctors who take some time off their daily schedules to visit the schools.

At the beginning of the study, ten schools were chosen at random to participate. This year, however, all the schools have participated. That can be attributed to the benefits that were established from the intervention. Some of the benefits of this initiative include improved adherence to the medication. That proved to be more effective, and it is a good outreach program.